Howdy From The Desert Southwest

Me: 50-something year old in southern Arizona. Mechanical engineer by day, poker player/blogger by night. Happily married 30+ years. Two kids, both out of the house (but both partially still on the payroll).

I'm here because a) I'm convinced we in the US live in a giant house of cards that could come crashing down with nothing more than a strong wind; and b) I don't want to be one of the millions that are caught unprepared and hoping for a miracle to bail them out.

Being the ABC engineer that I am, I want to prepare for disaster, but I want to do so in a logical and linear manner. I'm here to learn how to do just that. And hopefully give back a little in the process.

 

Welcome @Buggzilla

 

All: thanks for the welcome.

@BTPost: haven't gotten to comm preps yet; am still working on shoring up my water supply situatoin (perhaps the most important thing here in AZ) and food preps. Some security stuff, too, is currently on the front burner. Oh, and I'm a fat bastard that needs to get my body in SHTF survival shape, too.

@Yard Dart: I'm a very serious amateur online and live Texas Hold'em player and long-running blogger on the subject. Have taught the game at a local community college, and now do a fair bit of coaching on the side, too. I use poker as a secondary source of income that funds prepping needs (bought my 2013 F150 4x4 bugout vehicle last year with poker winnings, for instance).

 

Welcome!

 

@Yard Dart: Doyle's the man! I've got everything he's ever written on the game. Hell, I've got pretty much everything *anybody* has written on the game in my library. I'm primarily a cash game specialist, but occasionally play in multi-day tourneys, including the WSOP.

 

Welcome to the tree @Buggzilla .. Lived down in the SW corner of your state for a wile..

 

Happy to have you.
And greetings from Southern Arizona to, well, Southern Arizona.
Good people here, good information as well.
Feel free to ask if you have questions. If the person you ask doesn't know, they'll probably be able to steer you to someone who does.
Looks like you've chosen a Wankel engine for your avatar if I'm not mistaken.

 

Morning @Buggzilla. That above ^^^^ tells me that you are approaching this new lifestyle in a logical manner. I think you will be a wonder addition to the monkey. Welcome!

 

@Altoidfishfins: Good eye. Yes, that's a late model Renesis variant of the Wankel. In addition to prepping and poker, I'm also a bit of a car nut. I've written and published five non-fiction automotive books, including one on Mazda's rotary engine (I'd include a link, but because I'm a newbie here, the site restrictions on links apply). In any case, it's a truly amazing engine-- mechanical poetry. I have a turbocharged 13b stuffed into the engine bay of my own 1959 Austin Healey Bugeye Sprite.

 

What the heck is an ABC engineer, I are an EE Comm and IT.

Rancher

 

LOL. By "ABC" I meant that I'm linear and straightforward, like A-B-C.
To answer what I think your actual question is: I have a degree in aerospace and mechanical engineering, and I'm also a registered PE (professional engineer) in AZ.

 

Poker and rotary motors! You rock! I once did 180+ in an rx7 with twin turbos. Welcome to the tree. You found the right place.

 

Thanks. Yes, taking the effort to test for the PE was one of the smarter things I've done in my life. It's opened a ton of career doors. Not easy, but definitely worth it.